Vail accidentally scores Barrie's winning goal

BARRIE – Brady Vail’s hard work was met with punishment instead of a reward Saturday.

The Windsor Spitfires’ veteran centre flew off the bench late in the game to try and break up an odd-man rush by the Barrie Colts.

He got back in time to get his stick a cross-ice pass attempt by Barrie’s Andrew Magiapane, but watched helplessly as the puck deflected off his stick and over the blocker of Windsor goalie Alex Fotinos and into the net.

That would be the game-winning goal as the Colts held on for a 4-3 win over the Spitfires before 3,819 at the Molson Centre.

“It felt like a bad dream,” the 19-year-old Vail said. “It couldn’t have been more perfect into the net.”

That created the odd-man rush the other way for Barrie that Vail thought he had gotten back to break up.

“I came back and tried to deflect it into the corner,” Vail said. “The hole (over Fotinos) couldn’t have been more than that big (he said making a small circle with his two hands).”

Windsor got Fotinos to the bench for an extra attacker with just under two minutes to play and stormed the Barrie zone, but they were unable to get the equalizer past Blackwood, who made 52 saves.

“It’s a bad break,” Spitfires head coach Bob Boughner said of the game-winning goal. “I thought we deserved better.

“We didn’t play great, but we had 55 shots on net, we outchanced them (21-17) in their building and played well enough to win on the road.”

Windsor posted a season-high 27 shots in the opening period, but had nothing to show for it as the Colts grabbed a 1-0 lead on Magiapane’s first goal of the game.

“I thought we opened it up a little too much in the first period,” Boughner said.

It stayed that way through the opening 14 minutes of the second period, but the two teams combined for three goals in just over four minutes to close the period.

Rookie Chris Cobham pulled the Spitfires even with his first Ontario Hockey League goal and first point of the season in 21 games.

“It’s definitely a monkey off my back,” said the 17-year-old Cobham, who was a 10th-round pick by the club in 2012. “It was a good time to get it to get the guys going.”

Magiapane scored on a Barrie power play to put the Colts up again, but Windsor answered with a power-play goal of its own just 24 seconds later to tie the game at 2-2 after two periods.

Originally, the goal was given to Slater Koekkoek, but was later changed on review with Ben Johnson redirecting the shot in.

“They’re a good team and a fast group,” Vail said of the Colts. “Obviously, the made things difficult in our end, but I thought we were as good (offensively) in their end.”

Brendan Lemieux put the Colts up again at 3-2 in the third period, but the Spitfires quickly countered on a goal by Cristiano DiGiacinto just 27 seconds later to tie the game and set the stage for the winner, which was credited to Magiapane to complete his hat trick.

“We should have won that game,” said Vail, who had two assists. “There at the end (with Fotinos on the bench), we should have had one, two or even three goals.

“We had our chances. Sometimes, it just doesn’t go your way.”

The Spitfires are back in action Sunday in Owen Sound against the Attack. Game time is 2 p.m.

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